Liquid treatment



Feb. 26, 1946. s m 2,3955508 LIQUID TREATMENT Filed Oct.' 6, 1941 I 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOI Q Feb. 26, 1946. $EDD|G LIQUID TREATMENT Filed Oct. 6, 1941 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Feb. 26, 1946;

R. E. SEDDIG. 2,395,508

LIQUID TREATMENT Filed Oct. 6, 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR'.

BY v fioberifi. fieddg,

FDR

Patented Feb. 26, 1946 UNITED STATES LIQUID TREATMENT Robert E. Seddig, Chicago, lll assignor to Graver Tank & Mfg. 00., East. Chicago, 111., a. corporation of Delaware Application October 6, 1941, SerialNo. 413,751

7 Claims. Y

particularly, filtration of water for municipal supply.

One of its objects is, to provide apparatus which isefiicient, simple, and inexpensive. Other objects are, to combine a plurality of independent filters in a tank of the smallest possible size, to provide the greatest possible operating capacity, to conserve head, to facilitate the operation, to allow easy inspection of the bed and of the various fiows, to simplify the design and construction, and to eliminate shortcomings of earlier designs. Still other objects will appear'hereinafter.

Filters for municipal'supply are usually, and desirably, operated from a platform above the water level. The operator can observe the filter while he manipulates the valve settin devices on this platform, which are mechanically, electrically or otherwise connected with the filter valves. The valves have frequently'been placed on pipes, forming a so-called filter front, in a gallery or vault below the operating platform. In other instances, the filter flows have been'conducted through open channels, standpipes or basins, controlled by sluice gates or the like, or some flows have been passed through open conduits while others have been confined in pipes. The complete plant composed. of filters and pipe gallery or channels, with superstructure, has either been rectangular in plan view, or sometimes circular, or in rare instances, triangular, polyonal, or of some other shape.

Open conduits for the filter flows have the great advantage that they allow continuous inspection of all the water in the plant, and timely detection of deposits and the like. In this they are vastly superior to pipes, regardless whether so-called samplin lines may be provided for inspection of samples of the water on the operating platform. It is one object of myinvention ,to make, full use of open conduits. In sand filters,

there are usually five separate and distinct-flows, identified as lnfluent, effluent, backwash supply, waste, and filter drainage flows. In some instances, I may construct the conduits for all of these flows as open channels or standpip'es.- In other instances, the conduits leading to the filter, especially the backwash pressure conduit, may be pipes, while other conduits are open. The design can be modified in a numberof ways, in this re spect.

' Circular plants have considerableadvantages over rectangular ones; for instance, they are easier to oversee from a central point; theyare cheaper to construct where excavation work is re-r quired; they need less material for walls, per unit of area; they keep the water cooler in the summer, and protect it better against freezing temperatures in the winter. Heretofore', however, the use of circular plants has been retarded by difficulties in connection with conduits and controls. In some instances, there has been provided a large, central pipe vault, with a maze of pipes twisting around therein and interconnecting the various inlets and outlets of the surrounding filters; involving long trips from the operating plat-. form to the filter valves and viceversa; also in- V01Villggreat expense for numerous special fittings and the like, and'considerable losses: of head due to long and tortuous flows. In other instances, valves or gates had to be. operated by rods passing through stuffing boxes. in solid walls, or with miter gears interposed, or subject to other difiiculties or complications. It is one object of my invention to overcome those difiiculties and to eliminate those complications in a circular plant.

Still another object is to provide a complete treatment plant comprising a highly efiicient 26 clarifier, a series of filters, and an efiicient collecting well for such filters, communicating with saidclarifier.

I The manner in which these several objects are achieved will be understood on considerationof 39 the detailed'description which follows, in connection-with the drawings.

Figure l is a diagrammatical sectional elevation of one embodiment of my invention. Figure 2 is a diagrammatical plan .view of the apparatus of Figure 1. Figure ,2--A is a sectional View, on a larger scale than that .of Figures 1 and 2, of central portions of an embodiment hereof, the section being taken alon lines 2-A2-A in Figur 3, and the apparatus being slightly modified, as to the valve actuating means formingpart thereon Figure 3 is a sectional elevation of the apparatus of Figure 2--A, the section being taken along lines: 3-3 in Figure 2A. Figures 4 and 5 show modified embodiment fin plan view.

The filter plant or tank H! has a main collecting well I5 centrally and concentrically installed therein. This well is surrounded by four filter units ll, l2, l3 and I4 forming part of the plant. Thefilter units are separated from the collecting well by an outer wall of said well. This wall, as shown, comprises two superposed, cylindrical portions lfi-A and lB-B, interconnected by an annular portion |6--C, and forming an upwardly exp n in 'standpipe, the lower portion IS-'A having a relatively small diameter while the upper portion lB-B has a relatively larger diameter. Vertical walls, partitions or bulkheads H are secured to the outside of the wall |6-A, |6-B and 6'--C, and radiate outwardly therefrom to the wall of the tank In. The filter units are separated from one another by these bulkheads, which extend from the bottom l8 of the filter plant to a level above the water level l9; this water level being established during filtration service, as usual, adjacent the top of the tank.

Each filter, a shown, has an underdrain champendently of the other filters, by control means 10- cated on a central operating platform 25 above the filters. The two distributor ducts are concentric with the well and are shown as substantially annular ducts surrounding the well. I

The well I5 carries, on the outside thereof, arcuate launders 21, serving a backwash launders in manner known to the art. The bottom of each launder is formed by means of a horizontal bottom plate 2|-B extending outwardly from the aforementioned plate |6-C and having the shape of a ring sector. A vertical, cylindrical plate 21C extends from the outer edges of the plates 2'|B to a level between the top of the filter bed and the top of the tank, to form the outer Walls of the launders. Gaps or openings 34-A are left between the horizontal launder bottom plates 21-13, while the cylindrical launder wall plate 2'|C is substantially continuous, and has no gaps or openings corresponding to 34-.A. The backwash launders 21 are separated from one another by vertical passages or pipes P-34, discharging through said openings 34-A. Each pipe or passage P-34 is formed and confined by and between portions of the vertical walls Iii-B, l1, 2'|C;and additional vertical walls 34-W. Thus the central well I5 is surrounded by launders 21 separated from one another by vertical pipes P34 and each filter unit H, |2, l3 and M has one launder 21 and one vertical pipe P-34 associated therewith.

One of the'water distributor ducts is the infiuent distributor 23 which surround a lower portion of the cylindrical launder wall 2'|C; it is formed by afurther cylindrical wall 23--C upwardly extending from the horizontal plate 2 --A, and an annular top plate 23--T. extending between the top ofthe wall 23-C and the outside of the launder wall 21-0; the plate 2 |A as well as the other walls of the distributor duct 23 being imperforate insofar as they form said distributor duct, while the remainder of the underdrain plate 2 |--A, outside of the distributor duct is perforated as mentioned. The second or backwash distributor duct 24is installed adjacent the top of the tank, surrounding the well IS. The four backwash branch pipes or passages P34 extend inwardly away from the distributor 24 and vertically downward between the launders 21, to the discharge openings or gaps 34-A communicating with the underdrain chambers 2 0.

Each launder'2'l is open on top and communicateswith the freeboard chamber 22 through this top,-" which formsa passage P--2'|. Furthermore each launder 2'! has one or several side passages or slots P--28 opening through the launder wall 2|-C above the infiuent distributor 23. A conventional wash trough 28 communicates with each passage P28 and extends outwardly from the launder wall 21--C, over the filter bed 2|.

Within the well l5, and concentrically therewith, a cylindrical wall, standpipe or annular partition 39 extend from the inner edge of the wall portion |6C, upwardly continuing the lower, smaller wall portion IB-A, and forming an annular collecting well or conduit P36, open on top and defined by the walls |6B, |6C and 39. Furthermore, a cylindrical wall, standpipe or annular partition 3|, of smaller diameter than the lower wall portion lG-A, extends upwardly from the tank bottom l8, Within the well l5 and concentrically therewith, so that a further collecting well percolates through the bed 2| of'filter M, in

cident to which it is rid of impurities. Clear water arrives in the underdrain 20 of filter I4, and flows through a short conduitP-ZB (through wall |6-A, across well P3'|, and through wall 3|) intothe central, collecting clear well P32, from the bottom of which it passes to further storage or service through the outlet header 32. An

efiluent valve gate V30 is interposed on the end of conduit 19-29 along the cylindrical wall 3|,

within the clear well P--32, to control the flow:

into this well. H Assuming now that the filter l2 is being backwashed, the flows in this filter are as follows: The backwash supply distributor 24, being a boxed pipe circling the collecting well l5, above the filter bed, discharges through the backwash valve V--33,.

associated with filter I2, through the downwardly extending conduit P34,-joining. this valve, and

through an opening 34-1A at the bottom of said conduit P34 into the underdrain 2|), from whence the water rises through the bed 2|, into the freeboard space 22, of filter |2. The spent backwash water, which has expanded and agi-' tated the filter bed 2|, and which carries, in suspension, the impuritie removed from the bed; is collectedin the back wash troughs 28 and launder 21 of this filter. The launder has a waste passage P-35 and associated Waste valve V- -35, through which the spent backwash water enters the waste header channel P- -36, forming a further separate collecting well or part of the main collecting well the rinse collector channelP-3'l, which 5111'.

assures rounds the central clear well P-32,and is in turn surrounded by the wasteheader P-36.

The central collecting well 15 has one compartment for each of the aforementioned flows, concentrically arranged; the service compartment or clear well P-32 being innermost, the rinse compartment or channel P--31 surrounding it,'and the backwash compartment or waste channel 'P-St surrounding the latter. This arrangement, of course, is subject to change; for "instance, the rinse channel could be innermost, and the clear well next, providing greater area, but possibly-somewhat less visibility, for the clear well; The filters, with their individual troughs 28,? and launders 21, surround the .collecting well as a whole. The incoming, distributing headers 23 andz24 may .be placed outside of th'e collecting well 15, in the filters, as shown; or they may find room at some other points.

. Those-distributing headersmay be placed at various elevations, but an arrangement substantially as shown and described is preferred, since it facilitates construction and operation of the necessary valves and associated control members. Similarly, the depth of the several standpipes forming the collecting well can be varied, but again the arrangement shown is preferred. It provides a clear well P--32 and rinse well P-31, communicating with the underdrains 20 and extending upwardly from the bottom l8; and a backwash waste well P-36, communicating with the freeboard spaces 22, and located at an elevated level. The bottom of this waste Well P-'-36, as well as those of the individual wash troughs 28 and launders 21, should have a sufiicient slope to cause a rapid flow, flushing out the impurities. Thus, the bottom Iii-C of the waste collecting well may spiral down around the rinse part P31 of the collecting well; and in turn, the bottoms 21-B of each of the launders 21 may form spiral arcs along the Wall IS -B of the collecting well. This wall Iii-B, which separates the individual'filters from the collecting well, should extend to a point above the water level l9, established during filtration service. On the other hand, the interior standpipes forming the rinse chamber P-31 and the clear well P32 need not extend to the top. Several feet of head are lost in filtering and rinsing. Therefore, material can be saved, and visibility increased, by having the outer wall of the rinse channel, 39, extend only to some point intermediate the bottom Iii-C of the waste 7 channel P-36 and the top of the plant. The rinse channel P-31 may then be drained either through a separate L 31A joining the waste header 31, as shown; or it may simply overflow into the waste channel P--36. The clear well P-32 will preferably extend at least a small distance above the rinse well P--31, in order to avoid pollution of the water intended for service. In operation, then, the central clear well will have filtered water in it as long as filtration SBI'V', ice continues in any filter or filters of the plant; and the level of the water in this clear well will be so far below the top level I9, as the average loss of head, in the filters connected to this well, may indicate. The other collecting wells or channels P-31 and P-3B will have flows passing through the same-as often, and as long as any filter, or filters, may be backwashed, or rinsed.

In filter operation, it is important to conserve as much as possible ofthe potential and static head of the water, which generally'has to be pumped from a source to the plant, and

again'to be pumped from the plant. to a point.

strictions and the like, should be eliminated, as

far as sound design and operation may? allow. Those additional losses are indeed, at an absolute minimum in my improved filter." The'service flow has no restrictions or other appreciable sources of loss of head interposed on it, aside from necessary valves and filter bed; the -channels 21, 22, 20, P 29, and P-32 can and will be made of such size and shape as to offer practically noresistance. The same thing'is true of the distributing and collecting pipes or headers 23 and 32 for this fiow. 1 v

Similarly, unnecessary and excessive losses of head, incident to ba'ckwashing, are avoided by the construction of the passages for the backwash flow, that is, the large conduits P--34, 20, 28, 21 and P--36, aside from the headers 24 and 31 for backwash fiow. Concerning, in particular, the incoming backwash branch conduit P-34, it will be seen from Figure 2--A that this conduit, in my preferred embodiment, finds ample and convenient space in the large-sized gaps which are formed between the backwash launders 21 of the individual filters. The launders 21 and conduits P--34 may alternate around the wall I6 of the center well ii. In some instances, the wash water branch pipes 1 -34, leading down from the header 24, maycommunioate both with the underdrain 20, and with pipes 34'-B discharging adjacent the surface of the filter bed 2|, so that a surface wash may be applied.

Filter operation may be either manual or automatic, and thus I may either provide control and timer tables 40, containing automatic program controllers, adjustable and controllable by knobs, pushbuttons, or other similar-means II, which are well known to the art (Figures 1, 2), or I- may use hand wheels 42 on pedestals 43, or the like (Figure 3). In either eventsucli manual orautomatic controls, their adjustment members; indicators, and other auxiliary attachments and parts, are conveniently and desirably located on the operating platform 25,'from which the filters ll, l2, l3, M, the clear well P--32, the backwash launders 21, the backwash collector channel P36, and the rinse collector channel 19-31 can be observed, due to the open construction and suitable circular arrangement thereof. 1

Not only filter inspection, but also the opera-.- tion and maintenance of the filters, from this central operating platform on top of the plant, are greatly facilitated by the open construction of most of the conduits-particularly due to the. use of vertical standpipes and boxed conduits, as illustrated, which allow the insertion'of sluice gates or other valves; operating in'vertical planes, and actuated by vertical rods. For instance, a vertical rod 44 runs unobstructedly-from the inlet valve or sluice gate V2=$ of filter 12 to the corresponding operating means, which as shown is a handwheel 42, upon the operating platform 25 (Fig. 3). Thisrod-M runs parallel with the vertical wall 21'-C of the launder 21 of filter 12.

Three other valve operatin rods belonging to '75 the same filter are shownat Ii, 4i ,and"41;co'n"- nected withthe waste, rinse,z,and eflluent valves respectively, and runningin the open, vertical channels for waste, rinse and efiluent water, respectively. \The backwash branch conduit, when constructed as a closed pressureconduit, may be controlled by a gate valve V-33 actuated by a vertical rod 48' which avoids all solid obstructions. The rods 44,45, 46, 41 and 48 may pass through guidingsleeves 49, attached to the walls, of the collector, well and distributor channels by suitable brackets orthe like. r a,

, The vertical walls of the collecting well, of the several compartments therein, and; of the distributing ,conduits23, 24, or some of them, may serve as supporting members for the filter bed, the operating platform, and other component parts of the plant, including the radial partitions l1, whichin turn serve as braces for, the standpipe or pipes it, especially if the structure is made ofv steel. Additionalsupports may be provided in the underdrain chamber 20 and elsewhere; and some elements, such as the backwash header 24, may support the operating platform or other top j structure by members 52; the backwash header itself being supported by the bulkheads l1 secured to the well l5, and thus at least being partly supported by the well. Usually there will be a walkway 53 giving access to the operating platform 25, as shown in Figure 2.

The entire filter plant, and particularly the collecting well and centerpiece 15, are very compact andstrongly built; they save a maximum of space and material; and they reduce the necessary piping and fittings to a minimum; aside from other advantages, as mentioned. They can be built from any common material, but I prefer steel.- The task of assemblingthe complete plant bywelding is greatly simplified and made much 7 more economical by the use of the open vertical lation, sedimentation, or combinations of such One or several basins 56 for such.

treatments. treatment may surround the filter plant I J1, and communicate with the infiuent header 23 through a conduit 51 joining either the bottom, or the top, or the side of the header 23. A backwash supply tank 58 may be installed at a suitable point, and feed the backwash header 24 through a conduit 59. Y

Inthe modified plant according to Figure 4 the rawwater from source 60 may pass through either one of two conduits 6| andiZ, controlled by valves 53 and 64, respectively, to either one of two rising wells 65 and 66, further to chemical mixing basins 61 and 68, and settling basins 69 and I0, discharging into troughs ll-and 12 controlled by gates 13 and '14. A single conduit 15, desirably in the form of an-open trough at the same approximate level with the settlertroughs H and 12, brings the water to a central collecting well 16, with minimumloss of head and wastage of piping. The design and operation .of the collecting well", and associated parts, may be substantially the same .98 those described-in detail ';above. The

central clear welldischarges to storage or service through a main l1. I In the further modification of Figure 5, the raw water from source 18 may pass through conduits 19 to the bottom of mixing or aerating basins 80, and further to a trough 8| having a weir edge at the top of suchbasins, and another weir edge, at a somewhat lower level, discharging into a central clarifier basin 82. This clarifier in turn may discharge into an outlet trough8 3 and con: duit 84, to a center well 8 5rsimilar to those above described, feeding and draining a series of filters 86, which surround the clarifier, through conduits 81 suitably installed in the top, or bottom, or both; The clear well'again discharges through amain 88. V Many other modifications can be made. Forinstance, instead of sand filters, there may be filters.

of anthracite, activated carbon, zeolite; orsother materials, or combinations thereof. brine chambers and the like may be located in some of the compartments. The liquid under treatment may not be water for municipal .use, but an industrial supply, process liquor, or waste; it may be sewage, or any other aqueous liquid.

I claim: 1

- 1. In water treating apparatus, a circular tank structure, a fiat bottom thereof, an annular,.con-

centric partition extending from the bottom-to the top of said tank structure, radial partitions extending from thebottom to the top of said tank structure and extendin outward from said an nular partition, horizontal partitions extending between pairs of saidiradial partitions, between the top and bottom of said tank structure, launders secured to the outside of said annular partisti'on betweenpairs of said radial partitions, filter beds supported on said horizontal partitions and confined between said radial partitions, said sev-' eral partitions being so arranged and secured to one anotherthat the freeboard space above each filter bed permanently communicates with the respective launder whereas said freeboard spaces and the underdrain spaces below said filter beds are partitioned from each other and from the space within said annular partition, two annular Water supply conduits concentric with said partitions, at least partlysupported thereby and discharging respectively into said freeboard and derdrain spaces, at least two water collecting con duits open to the atmosphere and located on the inside of said annular partition, one of said collecting conduits being connected to said under drain spaces and the other of said collecting conduits being connected to said launders, and means adapted to control the flow of water from and into said several conduits,

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 combined with a clarifier, said clarifier being concentric top of said-tank in a central part thereof and thereby forming a central well in said tank, partitions extending from said standpipe to thewall of said. tank and rising from the bottomto the top ofsaid tank, filterbeds disposed betweensuch partitions above thebottom. and below the top of Auxiliary said tank and thereby separating underdrains below said filterbeds from freeboard rooms above said filterbeds, a first liquid supply conduit, a second liquid supply conduit, additional standpipe means disposed within said central well and form ing a plurality of liquid collecting wells therein, a first means for passage of liquid between said first supply conduit and each of said freeboard rooms, a second means for passage of liquid between said second supply conduit and each of said underdrains, a third means for passage of liquid between one of said liquid collecting Wells and each of said underdrains, a fourth means for passage of liquid between another of said liquid collecting wells and each of said freeboard rooms, and liquid flow control means interposed on each of said means for passage of liquid.

4. Liquid treatment apparatus according to claim 3 wherein at least two of said additional standpipe means are disposed within said central well, forming at least three liquid collecting wells therein, and which apparatus comprises an additional means for passage of liquid between one of said liquid collecting wells and each of said underdrains.

5. Liquid treatment apparatus according to claim 3 wherein said second supply conduit is installed adjacent to the top of said tank, and which apparatus comprises a branch conduit extending between said second supply conduit and each of said underdrains adjacent to said standpipe.

6. Liquid treatment apparatus according to claim 3 comprising an additional conduit extending between said second supply conduit and each of said filterbeds, adjacent to the surface of the filterbed, and adapted to discharge liquid. adjacent to the surface of the filterbed.

7. Apparatus accordling to claim 1 wherein at least some of said supply and collecting conduits have gate means interposed thereon, such gate means being vertically disposed adjacent to at least one of the partitions.

ROBERT E. SEDDIG. 

